Fastener



(No Model.)

H. S. RICHARDSON.

FASTBNBR.

No. 598,959. Patented. Feb. 15,1898.

Inventor- Witneyses UNITED STATES I PATENT OFFICE.

. HENRY s. RICHARDSON, or TERRE HAUTE, INDIANA.

FASTEN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 598,959, dated February15, 1898.

Application filed $eptember 8, 1896. Serial No. 605,211. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern- Be it known that I, HENRY S. RICHARDSON, acitizen of the United States, residing at Terre Haute, in the county ofVigo and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Harness-Fastenin gs; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,andto the letters of reference marked thereon, which form part of thisspecification.

My invention relates to that class of harness-fastenings which are usedfor fastening the crupper, belly-bands, and other like parts of harnesswhich must be frequentlyfastened and unfastened; and the objects of theinvention are, first, to provide a simple,-convenient, and effectivedevice for fastening and unfastening the parts of harness second, toprovide a device which will not stick or.

catch and hence render its operation diflicult, and, third, to provide adevice upon which a horses tail or other object will not catch. I attainthese objects by means of the mech= anism illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 represents the fastening whenadjusted to hold a strap, but with the collar or slide pushed up uponthe strap to which it is attached in order that the jaws may be seen.Fig. 2 represents the metal collar or slide. Fig. 3 represents the twojaws attached to the end of a strap and held partially open by a sectionof the collar or slide.

Similar lettersofv reference refer to similar parts throughout theseveral views.

In the drawings the letters 0 and 01 indicate a pair of hook-like jawswhich are fastened together by meansof a pivot r. The upper portions orbodies ofthesejaws are recessed or halved in order that they may befitted together in a manner similar to that of scissors, and thus whenfastened together they only present a thickness equal to that of eitherjaw. ,The lower or curved portions of the jaws are beveled in suchmanner that they will lap one upon the other and still retain a uniformthickness with the whole of the united jaws. The upper portion of thejaw c is rounded out to form a cam-like projection upon its inner side.I This cam fits into a rounded recess which is cut into the face A notch11 is cut into the outer edge of each of the jaws, and a recess or notch0 is cut into the upper edge of both jaws for the purpose hereinafterset forth. I

The letter to in Fig. 2 indicates a collar or slide which. is made ofbrass, steel, or other suitable spring metal and consists of a hollowrectangular body, from the two sides of which are cut or stamped aspring 8, said springs .9 being curved inward at a point 8' near theouter ends thereof, and a tongue or catch 25 is struck down from theupper side of the body, as shown in Fig. 2.

- The letter 1) indicates a leather loop or slide, which consists of theloop proper and a pendant-strap b. The collar or slide a fits into andacts as a form for the loop I? and is firmly fas tened therein in anysubstantial manner.

The letter a indicates a strap upon the end of which is formed a loopm'in any convenient manner.

, To attach my invention to any part of a harness, I pass the stationarystrap a through the collar or slide it, which is fastened within theloop 17, then attach the jaws c and d to the strap a by means of thepivotr, leaving just enough of the end of the strap for the same toextend down and cover the back ofthe jaws and clamp the hooked portionof the two jaws together within the loop m, formed at the end of thedetached strap a. By means of the pendant b I then pull the collar orslide to down upon the upper portion of the jaws until the bent portions of the springs s catch into the notches n of the jaws, and at the sametime the tongue or catcht catches in the notches 0 in the upper edges ofthe jaws, and thereby clamp the collar or slide a upon the upper portionof the jaws and at the same time clamp the lower hooked portion of theaws within the loop m of the strap a, thus firmly fastening the twostraps together. To release the jaws, and consequently the strap a, itis only necessary to push the collar or 8, binding in the notches n,will force the two jaws to open upon the cam formed at theirintersection until the springs s, and conse ICO slide upward upon thestrap a. The springs.

quently the collar or slide, are free from the jaws. By opening the jawsin this manner the strap a will be released.

The advantages that I claim for my invention over the common form ofbuckles and other like forms of harness-fastenings are the increasedease with which it can be manipulated and its safety from becomingdetached or unfastened accidentally.

Having described myinvention and its purpose, what I claim asmyinvention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a harness-fastening, the combination of two hook-like jaws c andd, pivoted together by means of a'pivot r, said jaws having curved orcam edges at their intersection, the notches n upon their outer edgesand a notch 0 in their upper edge, with a metallic collar or slide it,said collar or slide being provided with the springs 8 adapted to catchinto the notches n of the jaws and the tongue or catch t adapted tocatch into the notches 0 of the jaws within a leather loop Z9,substantially as described and set forth.

2. The combination, with the two straps a and a, said strap a havingaloop m-secured thereto, of the fastening consisting of the pivoted jawsc and d, the loop I), pendant b and the metallic collar or slide it,said collar or slide being provided with the springs 8, adapted to catchinto the notches n of the jaws and the tongue or catch 15 struck downfrom the upper side thereof, all substantially as described and for thepurpose set forth.

3. In a harness-fastenin g, the combination of the fastening having thepivotedand recessed jaws c and d and the collar or slide it, adapted tooperate said jaws, and the loop I), with the strap a, connected with thejaws and a strap a furnished with a loop an adapted to be connected withthe hook-like ends of the jaws, substantially as described and for thepurpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

HENRY S. RICHARDSON.

Witnesses:

SYDNEY B. DAVIS, FRED W. BEAL.

